Life as a Demon
by Wolfyn-D
Summary: Based off the episode of Saiyuki Reload where Goku thinks Sanzo has turned into a demon...It ended up being a dream, but now it has become real. Can Goku and the others keep Sanzo from going berserk? First fanfic, be nice!


**Chapter One?? **

((This is my first ever fanfic, and I'm new to fanfiction as in how to write stuff, so please bear with me until I figure out how to get things right...As in how many chapters this will be? I have no idea ;; ...There will be more though.))

Based off the Saiyuki Reload episode where Goku thinks Sanzo has actually become a demon. In the episode, it ended up being a dream…but this time, Goku wakes up to find it really has happened. After killing his thousandth demon, Sanzo transforms, and leaves Goku and the others wondering what happened. Though this event seems to be both a 'blessing and a curse',will Goku,Hakkai,and Gojyo be able to keep Sanzo from going berserk?

Gojyo chucked a pillow at Goku, hitting him right in the face. "How's he still asleep?" Gojyo said, annoyed that it was taking so long for their 'precious little monkey' to get up. "Oi, you stupid monkey! Get up!" He added, this time throwing his own shoe at Goku.  
"What was that for??" Goku said groggily, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Why are you waking me up so early?" He added, squinting his eyes to keep the light out.  
"It's already 11 'o-clock…" Hakkai chimed in, that worriless face making its appearance once more. "I'm surprised you weren't up earlier, asking for food... Are you feeling okay?" Hakkai asked, but didn't seem too concerned.  
"I'm feeling fine…Where's Sanzo?" Goku asked, wondering where his master had gone off to now.  
"He left a while ago… Before any of us got up…" Hakkai explained, though it did seem a little concerning that he hadn't come back yet. "It's not like him to be gone this long, is it?" Hakkai asked, seeming to need confirmation from the others.  
"Hell...It wouldn't surprise me if he just got up and left us behind…" Gojyo said, remembering how they had 'accidentally' spilt liquor all over his robes the night before.  
"We gotta go look for him!" Goku said, jumping off the bed. He was worried about Sanzo now, and wasn't the one to just leave things alone. He was about to run out when he remembered one crucial thing. Food. His stomach rumbled audibly, and hunger took over his mind. " Where's breakfast?"  
Both Gojyo and Hakkai sighed, but after enough complaining from Goku, finally got him something to eat.  
Goku filled his stomach as quickly as possible, and then left the inn they'd been staying in to go look for Sanzo.  
"Do you think it's all right to just let him go alone? You know how he screws everything up…" Gojyo said, looking back at Hakkai.  
"Even if we wanted to stop him, you know how he gets when he goes after Sanzo…Though this situation is starting to concern me…Where would Sanzo go to, and why would he be gone for so long?" Hakkai said, becoming slightly more worried about the monk.  
Goku started to search more frantically, almost being able to sense that something seemed wrong. "Sanzooo?? Sanzoo!!?" He yelled out. Knowing Sanzo wasn't much of a 'people person', he didn't think Sanzo would be around town, so he had began looking for the monk and calling for him at the edge of the forest that surrounded the town. "Sanzo?!" He called one more time, and then caught the smell of something. "Blood??" He said aloud, as his eyes widened.

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Sanzo looked up at the sky. He had woken up early that morning, and seemed to be feeling weird, and more annoyed than usual, though nothing to provoke him had happened yet. Feeling like he needed to get away from the others, Sanzo left the inn they were staying at. Not sure exactly where he wanted to go, besides away from people, he had headed into the forest. After finding a spot to sit down, he lighted a cigarette, like normal. After a few more moments of smoking the cigarette, he started to doze off. The forest was quiet enough, no one was around, and he hadn't gotten much sleep the night before, so it seemed like an okay place to take a nap right. '_A nap? That's not like me_.' Sanzo thought. Just then, his body seemed to react on its own. He jumped out of the way right before a demon's sword lodged itself into the tree he'd been resting against. He felt a small twinge of pain, and felt a small trickle of blood flow down his arm. The sword just grazed his arm. "Damn…What's wrong with me?" Sanzo said, feeling a bit more sluggish.  
"I was told you would put up more of a fight, priest Genjyo Sanzo…" A demon's voice seemed to echo around him.  
"Come closer, and I'll give you a fight..." Sanzo said, trying to pinpoint the hidden demon's location.  
"You humans are so pathetic…I hoped this would be more enjoyable...I love to watch humans struggling to survive." Said the demon's voice, almost seeming to ignore Sanzo's words.  
"Show yourself…" Sanzo called out, but didn't really seem worried about this unknown demon. A few more words, and he might be able to find out where the demon was hiding.  
"And why would I do that?" The demon's voice answered, seemingly quite amused by Sanzo's demand.  
"There." Sanzo said to himself, firing three rounds into a nearby tree. He smirked, and then waited a moment.  
A demon appeared right where Sanzo had fired the shots, though the three bullet holes where just a few centimeters away form the demon's head on both side, the third one being right above his head. "H-How—How did you know where I was?!" The frightened, green skinned toned demon cried out.  
"You wouldn't shut up…Keep blabbering like that and a blind person could find you." Sanzo said, a small smirk still on his face. He raised his gun towards the demon, aiming for his head.  
"N-No! P-Please! Have mercy!" Cried the demon, waving his hands in he air, too afraid to even run away.  
"I told you to shut up!" Sanzo said, and fired one last shot, killing the demon instantly. Everything seemed normal, the demon disintegrated, and Sanzo 'celebrated' by lighting another cigarette. Then the feeling hit him. It seemed like a bolt of lighting had just struck him, and he dropped the cigarette. His nails started to grow a little longer, and got sharp. His hair grew an inch or two, and looked wilder. His ears narrowed towards the tips, got longer and pointier. "W-What's going on?" His said to himself, his breathing ragged. He had dropped to his knees, but as soon as the transformation had started, it was over. He just stayed there on his knees, wondering what had happened. Had he really just turned into a demon?

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Goku had already started to run towards the smell of blood when he heard three gunshots, a delay, and then a fourth. "That's gotta be Sanzo!" Goku talked aloud, more worried now that ever. He must have been attacked by demons, and it seemed a race against time to get to him. Goku sprinted even faster, and then skidded to a stop when he saw Sanzo in a small clearing, on his knees.

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"Sanzo?!" He called out, running to the purple-eyed monk. "Sanzo? Are you okay?" Goku asked, as he got closer. "What--?!" Was all he could say as Sanzo turned to face him. The pointy ears, longer hair, and sharp claw like fingernails were all too familiar. Sanzo's eyes had even changed, and had turned more catlike, with thin slitted pupils. "S-Sanzo?" Goku asked, almost hoping this demon wasn't Sanzo.  
"Goku? What...What happened?" Sanzo asked, too confused and bewildered to put two and two together.  
"Y-You can't be Sanzo! You're a demon!" Goku said, almost getting angry. Goku backed away a little, still not sure how to react.  
"Demon?…You…stupid…monkey." Was all Sanzo was able to say before he passed out. ((What would you do if you found out you'd just turned into a demon?))

Goku just sat down, next to the demon. "This couldn't really be Sanzo...It looks like him, but I thought he couldn't turn into one..." Goku said aloud, as if he hoped someone was listening to confirm his belief. He pulled Sanzo closer to him, and turned him towards him, to get another look at his face. It looked exactly him..The small red chakra on his forhead and everything. The same golden hair that shined like the sun, though it was a little messier and longer. "Sanzo?" Goku asked quietly, shaking him gently. Goku was almost afraid to wake him up, not knowing hat would happen to either of them. "Sanzo?" He asked, one more time, but again there was no response. Goku sighed, but pulled Sanzo up, having to half carry, half drag him back to the inn, where Hakkai and Gojyo were. _'Wait 'til they see this..._' He thought, wondering what Gojyo and Hakkai's reaction to seeing Sanzo as a demon would be. He finally got them out of the forest, and started back into town. The few townspeople who saw Goku carrying Sanzo weren't sure what to do, but like normal humans, just screamed and ran away. Goku managed to get them both back into the inn without anyone else seeing, and walked back into their room.

Hakkai immediately stood up. "Goku? What's wrong with Sanzo?" He said, too worried about the way Goku was bringing him in to notice that Sanzo was no longer human.  
Gojyo noticed almost immediately, and let everone else know. "That can't possibly be our high and mighty monk...That's a demon." He said, but when Goku layed Sanzo down on the bed, his mind changed. "What's going on? Is that really Sanzo?" He asked, seeming quite confused.  
"Goku?" Hakkai asked, looking over at him, and then Sanzo again.  
"Oh, it's Sanzo alright...I don't know what happened, but when I found him, he looked like this..." Goku seemed a little less distressed, having a little more time to think things over.  
"I didn't...I didn't think he could turn into one!" Gojyo said, starting to freak out. After all, he was mean enough as a human.  
"He is a priest, so it would seem unlikely in that sense...But I guess he is still human after all.." Hakkai suggested, letting his own thoughts out.  
"What do we do now?" Goku asked, looking towards Hakkai, who seemed a little unnerved, but otherwise calm like he normally was.

"This could be a problem..." Were the first words Gojyo said, after thinking things over a little.  
"Well there's the understatement of the year..." Hakkai added, looking over at Gojyo.  
"Is it really that bad?...Won't he be able to fight better now?" Goku asked, trying to stay on the positive side.  
"He is quite stubborn..I doubt Sanzo would go beserk easily..." Hakkai added, also trying to make the best of the situation.  
"Ugh...Can't you three ever shut up?" Asked an annoyed looking Sanzo. He felt his ears, seeming to remembering something, and his eyes widened. '_Still a demon...Great._' Thought Sanzo, as he returned to his normal state of mind. "Goku.Go get me some food." He ordered, acting like everything was normal.  
"You mean regular food...Not humans or anything like that,right?" Goku asked, praying that Sanzo wasn't _that_ kind of hungry.  
"Of course not, you stupid monkey!" He said, and hit Goku with the paper fan, before settling down again.  
"Okay! okay!" Goku said, retreating out of the room to go get some extra food.  
"Well you obviously haven't changed much..." Gojyo said with a smirk. '_At least he doesn't seem any angrier than he used to..._' He thought, taking a quick glance back at Sanzo's new demonic features. '_Wait until Kougaiji's bunch gets a load of this..._' He added, in his mind.  
"..Shut up.." Sanzo said,his voice sounding as serious and threatening as ever. He glared back at Gojyo for a moment, before reaching for his gun.  
"Hmmm...Someone's a little touchy today.." Gojyo continued, pushing his limits.  
"That's it." Sanzo said, practically yelling. He pulled out his gun and fired three shots at the crimson haired kappa, each of them whizzing by, only inches away form Gojyo's face.  
"Alright, I get it already, sheesh!" Gojyo replied, after taking refuge behind the innocent Hakkai.  
"Perhaps you could be a little more careful at where you're aiming?" Hakkai suggested, seeing that one of the bullets had almost hit Hakuryuu, who was now slightly traumatized.  
"Yeah...Whatever..." Sanzo replied, putting his gun away. For some reason, he suddenly started to think about what might happen to him if he tried to use the Makai Tenjyo...Would he get killed too, now that he was a demon?  
Goku cam back into the room with a bag, full of food. "I-I got the food!" Goku said, brining the bag to Sanzo, and then stopped to catch his breath. He had been running all over, and to different restaurants just to get good food.  
"What took you so long?" Sanzo asked, as he looked down at Goku. He pulled the bag open, and looked at what was inside. Of course, most of it was stuff only Goku would eat, but he picked a few things to satisfy himself.  
"What'd you get for me?" Gojyo said, also wanting something to eat.  
"I didn't get anything for you, you pervy water sprite! If you're hungry, you can go out and get something for yourself!" Answered Goku, not really wanting to share any more of 'his' meal with anyone else.  
"Hmph! God forbid you have to share any of your food.." Gojyo said, but it was the best he could come up with. He let out a long sigh, but then repeatedly tried to steal from the bag, while Goku was holding it.  
"Will you two knock it off?!" Sanzo asked angrily, taking a moment to yell at them.  
"Now now...I'm sure this can all be-" Was all Hakkai was able to get out before being interrupted by the sound of shattering glass. A few screams were heard, and the sounds were all too familiar to the four. Another demon attack.  
Sanzo was already pissed off, and the event of demons attacking put him into 'killer mode'. He pulled out his gun, and left the room without a word.  
"That's strange...He's usually lazy and let's us do all the work...Maybe this demon things has changed him for the better.." Gojyo observed.  
"I heard that!" Could be heard, obviosuly coming from an angry Sanzo as he walked down the hall,away from the room they were in.  
Gojyo turned to face Hakkai with a 'how did he hear that?' kind of look on his face.  
"It's...probably the ears..." Hakkai answered, knowing demons had better more attuned senses.  
Goku was sitting on the bed, still cramming food into his mouth. "Wait, Sanzo!!" He yelled, though it wasn't a pretty picture with a mouthful of food. He finished an apple, and then ran out of the room, of course wanting to make sure Sanzo would be okay. "Wait up!" He yelled, trying to get Sanzo to slow down.  
"I suppose we should go after them.." Hakkai said, that same unworried smile coming back to his face.  
"I guess you're right..." Gojyo answered, with a sigh. He followed Hakkai out of the room,closing the door behind him. "Here we go again.." He added, though he wasn't /really/ complaining.

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Sanzo walked into the room where the humans had been attacked by the demons. His presence was almost unnoticed by the rampaging youkai, sensing what they thought was another of their group. Oh, how they were wrong. Sanzo immediately shot down three of the youkai, and watched as their bodies fell to the floor. A small smirk appeared on his face as if he was enjoying it. "Hey!! What are you doing?!" Growled what seemed to be the leader of the youkai group. He identified Sanzo as a demon, but it was too late before he noticed he had 'Sanzo robes', and was wearing a scripture. "What the?!" The demon yelled, right before he too was killed. The smirk dissappeared from Sanzo's face, but the demon attittude was still there. Sanzo used his claws to kill one of the remaining demons, and seemed to be giving these new weapons a try.  
When Goku walked into the room, he was a little afraid to see the damage Sanzo had already done. "Wha...? Did you do all this?" He asked, as if it seemed unnatural.  
"Yeah..." Sanzo said, the smirk once more appearing on his face. As soon as Sanzo realized it had returned, he made it go away, and a slight frown took it's place. This new youkai strength was a little too enticing, and Sanzo knew he'd have to keep a lid on it if he didn't want to go berserk. That, of all things, was the worst possible scenario. He began to think if power limiters like Hakkai's might be useful.  
"Sanzo?...Are you..okay?" Goku asked, having seen the smirk on Sanzo's face appear, but then quickly go away. That same smirk...it reminded him of his own berserk form, and it sent a few chills down his back. The last thing he wanted was for Sanzo to turn into a monster like the Seiten Taisei.  
"I'm fine." He answered simply, turning to Goku. His purple eyes narrowed a little when they met Goku's, but he just walked back to their room, as if nothing had happened. Sanzo passed Hakkai and Gojyo as he went back down the hall.  
"What?? It's over already? Hell, I wanted to have some fun.." Gojyo whined, but then saw Goku just standing in the room where the demons had been killed. "Hey,man, you okay?" Gojyo asked, waving his hand in front of Goku's face.  
Goku quickly snapped out of it, in response to Gojyo's actions. "Yeah..I'm alright...but.."  
"But what?" Hakkai asked, now a little concerned.  
"Sanzo...He's acting...weird.." Goku said quietly.  
"Well he did just turn into a demon..That might explain it...But you don't mean berserk, do you?" Hakkai asked, an uneasy feeling hitting him.  
"I don't know, but after he killed those demons...I saw him smile...Like he was enjoying it, or something...And his eyes...I guess I'm just not used to seeing him like that,yet." Goku said, looking back at Gojyo and Hakkai.  
Hakkai and Gojyo both seemed to have the same reaction. Their eyes widened a little, and they both got the same feeling of what looking at the Seiten Taisei was like. How the monster inside of Goku enjoyed killing.  
"You've got to be kidding me.." Gojyo said quietly, running his hands through his long red hair.  
"I'm sure Sanzo has thought of this as well, but we might as well try to get power limiters for him. If anything, it would keep his new powers under control..." Hakkai added, already having thought of the possibility of Sanzo not being able to control his new strength...Though using power limiters to keep this new strength dormant might create a monster out of Sanzo if it was ever unleashed, just like the Seiten Taisei.  
"Maybe we should talk to Sanzo about it..." Goku said, looking a little worriedly up at Hakkai.  
"I guess that's all we can do for now, unfortunately.." Hakkai replied, and then started to walk back to their room.  
When the three of them opened the door, they were all very surprised. Sanzo was sitting on the bed, but the demonic features he had just a minute ago seemed to be gone. He was looking at a silver piece of metal, that resembled an armband, on his wrist.  
"Sanzo??" Was all Goku could say, wondering why he was apparently no longer demon.  
"Okay, what the hell is going on?!" Gojyo added, also confused.  
"I'm guessing you just fashioned yor own power limiter..?" Hakkai asked, pointing at the silver metal band on Sanzo's arm.If anyone could make a power limiter for himself, it was Sanzo, he figured.  
"Yeah." Sanzo answered, as if not quite sure what to make of it himself. He wouldn't admit it, but he knew he'd need to keep a lid on his newfound powers if he was going to stay 'normal'.  
"That's cool!" Goku said, sounding excited for some reason. In truth, he was just glad to see Sanzo out of the demon form, for he didn't think he'd ever get used to how Sanzo's eyes changed as a demon. To him, everything seemed to be okay now, and Goku finally relaxed.  
"You're so weird...It's just a limiter." Sanzo said, threatening the monkey with a smack from the paper fan. "Let's get going...Goku..Go get us more food." He added, lighting another cigarette, but looking plenty ready to continue on.  
"Awww, why me??" Goku whined, watching Sanzo get up.  
"Because you ate all the food yourself, you stupid monkey!" Sanzo said, firing a shot at Goku.  
"Okay,okay!" Goku replied, once more running out of the room to get more food.  
"Still a little angry...You may want to get yourself another limiter,Sanzo.." Gojyo commented, but was also fired at, the bullets whizzing right by his head. "Hey, calm down,man, it was a joke!" Gojyo added angrily.  
"Well, at least everything seems back to normal..." Hakkai said, mainly to himself.

Goku came back with two bags of food, about fifteen minutes later. It usually would have taken him longer, but he didn't want to make Sanzo any angrier. "Um...I got the food.." Goku said, once he had gotten back to where the others were waiting for him.  
"Well isn't that obvious?" Sanzo said, sounding just as annoyed as ever.  
It was about noon when they finally left, and Hakkai said that it would take them a full day, most likely, to get to the next town. Sanzo seemed to want to skip the next town, claiming they'd already wasted too much time. After a bit of arguing over whether camping outside, or in a nice warm inn with hot meals was better, Sanzo made a decision for them, and threatened to shoot anyone who made another complaint. After three or four hours of driving, they were stopped once more by a group of youkai, this one not the usual low ranking demons,though. It was Kougaiji,Yaone,Dokugakujin, and even Lirin.  
Hakkai stopped Jeep, and had him turn back into his dragon form. Jeep/Hakuryuu complied with his usual 'kyuu!' chirp, and flew off into a nearby tree.  
"Awww, man, not you guys again..." Gojyo sighed, thinking they might just be able to reach their next destination without a fight.  
"You know what we're here for, but I'm surprized you're not happy to see us." Dokugaku said,almost sarcastically, and used his powers to form his short sword.  
"So..We meet in battle once again.." Hakkai said to Yaone, who approached him, with a reluctant smile. "I suppose this can't be avoided?" He said, but readied himself in a defensive pose.  
"No, it can't..." Yaone answered, seeming a little more serious than usual. She 'summoned' her spear, and had a determined look on her face, one that showed there was obviously more at stake in this battle.  
Kougaji approached Sanzo, but it was already clear what he was going to say. "You can just give up the scripture, and we could let you off easy...If not, we'll fight you for it." He said calmly, but there was a certain underlying urgency in his tone.  
"Honestly, how many times have we gone through this?...I will not give up the scripture." Sanzo answered coldly.  
"I thought that would be your answer.." Kougaiji started, with a sigh. "Then we'll just have to take it from you...By force." He added, the killer look showing through his eyes.  
"All right! You're on,Kougaiji!" Goku said, forming his nyoi-bo(sp?). He was already anxious to have a rematch with the red haired youkai.  
"No,Goku...You fight the girl this time." He said, and looked over at Lirin. His hand moved towards power limiter on his opposite arm. It was still hidden by the long sleeves of his robe, but it wouldn't be for long.  
"Huh? What?? You gotta be kidding me!...Wait, you mean.." Goku said, and then watched as Sanzo reached for the power limiter. The long sleeve fell back as Sanzo lifted his arm up. The silver piece of metal became visible, and Goku and Kougaiji both just looked at it.  
"That's not possible--!" Kougaiji said, obviously surprised. He knew exactly what it was though, as soon as he saw it. "How..?" He added, still not believing Sanzo was a demon.  
"One thousand demons." Sanzo said simply, though he knew he didn't need to explain. "This time, it's you and me." He said threateningly, and with that, the power limiter fell to the floor. Sanzo felt the change begin instantly. Once again, his ears,nails, and hair got longer. His pupils slitted, becoming more animal like, as before. As soon as it started it was over, and Sanzo was in his demon form again. What had been stored energy now surged through him, and he got ready to fight.  
Kougaiji just stood there, not knowing what to make of this demon form of Sanzo. "I didn't think..." Was all he got out. "Whatever..It's still just Sanzo." Kougaiji said, and ran towards him. Kougaiji threw a punch at Sanzo's face, trying to gauge how much stornger Sanzo was now. Sanzo easily blocked Kougaiji's punch, and sent his own fist into Kougaiji's gut, knocking the wind out of the red haired demon. Kougaiji recovered quickly, but backed off a little. "Hm...Your hits are stronger than I expected..." Kougaiji admitted, looking at Sanzo.  
"I'm only getting warmed up." Sanzo said, and the devilish smirk came back to his face. He lunged forward, taking Kougaiji by surprise, and used his claws this time. It was obvious he was already enjoying this too much, close to how the Seiten Taisei enjoyed killing. He swiped at Kougaiji, and his claws slashed across the demon prince's chest. Kougaiji winced, but counter-attcked quickly. He threw another punch, this time connecting with the left side of Sanzo's face.  
Sanzo stayed still for a moment, and then looked up at Kougaiji. The same grin was on his face, and the punch didn't seem to affect him at all.  
Seeing this, Kougaiji's eyes widened a little. He figured fighting hand to hand would be just a waste of time, so he resorted to his summoning abilities. He began to say the spell needed to summon a demon spirit, and closed his eyes. When he opened them, after only a momemt, he looked up at saw Sanzo was gone. He felt a demonic presence over on the left of him, and glanced over at it's source.  
Sanzo took the time that Kougaiji was taking to say the spell to reload his gun. He fired two shots, the first grazing Kougaiji's right shoulder, and the second hitting it's mark. Kougaiji fell to the ground backwards, nearly helpless against a bullet from a banishing gun. Sanzo smirked again, his demonic powers still having too much of a hold over him.  
Goku watched, almost not believing what he was seeing. He'd never seen Sanzo so ruthless and cold before...And the fact that he still seemed to be enjoying the fight, in the worst way, scared him. He looked around to the others, Yaone and Dokugaku first, and they were disliking what was going on even more than he was.  
"Kou!!" Dokugaku yelled out, as he saw his prince get hit by the bullet. He immediately stopped the fight between he and Gojyo, and ran over to defend Kougaiji.  
Yaone was just as concerned, and did the same. She knelt down next to Kougaiji, who was obviously in pain, to see how bad the wounds looked. "The bullet's still in his shoulder, but fortunately it doesn't look too serious...It'll take some time to heal, though, seeing as what kind of gun the bullet came from." She said farily calmly. "I think the best thing would be for us to retreat, this time..." She said, now with a more serious tone.  
Lirin watched in horror as her brother fell to the ground, taken down by Sanzo, who had obviously changed. "Is he...really a demon now?...I..don't like it..." She said, her instincts telling her he wasn't the fairly harmless(in her opinion) human priest anymore. He had now become a demon, and much more dangerous than he'd ever been before. A rage started to build in her, mainly because of what Sanzo had done to her brother, but also because he didn't seem to have the right to become a demon. She looked at Sanzo, with hate glowing in her eyes, and ran towards him as fast as she could. "You stupid jerk!!" She yelled, and jumped up into the air, trying to catch him off gaurd.  
Sanzo already felt Lirin's presence getting closer, and turned as she jumped up in the air. He aimed his gun towards her chest, and then just waited for her to come down a little, as if he was just toying with her.  
Lirin immediately knew she had done the wrong thing when she saw Sanzo turn towards her as she came at him, as if he had expected her attack. She tried to turn back, but by that time she was in mid-air, which made running impossible.  
Both Yaone and Dokugaku saw Lirin run at Sanzo, but had no time to do anything about it, and they watched helplessy as it seemed she was going to be shot too. "Lady Lirin!!" Yaone called out, obviously worried that it looked like Lirin was going to die.  
Sanzo smirked again, his eyes hidden behind his still golden hair. He started to pull the trigger. The gun clicked, but the shot that was expected never came as Sanzo was tackled to the ground. Goku, who knew he was the only one that might be able to stop Sanzo like this, decided to figure out what was going on. "What the hell are you doing?!" He yelled, in a seriousness that wasn't often heard before.  
Sanzo's eyes widened a little, taken off guard by Goku's tackle. He snapped out of 'killing mode', after hearing Goku's tone of voice. "Get off of me." He said angrily, breaking free of Goku's hold. "I was defending myself." He added, still angry, as he glared back at Goku.  
"Defending yourself??" Goku replied, not liking the answer. "You nearly killed both Kougaiji and Lirin!" He added, now angry too. 'Where's his power limiter?' Goku thought, looking around, but not making it obvious that's what he was looking for.  
"Hn...Isn't it about time we get serious? Or our we going to play these stupid little games until the world ends?" Sanzo said, looking at Kougaiji, who was still on the ground.  
Both Hakkai and Gojyo had approached as Goku and Sanzo argued. Hakkai had gotten Sanzo's limiter, and intended to get it back onto him before the situation became any worse. Gojyo had realized Hakkai's plan, and was going along with it. At this point, it wouldn't have been suprising if Sanzo started shooting at them,too. Once they were both close enough, Gojyo lunged forward and grabbed Sanzo's right arm. Hakkai quickly closed the limiter around Sanzo's lower arm, and it took effect instantly.  
"What the hell are..you..do-" Was all Sanzo could say before he collapsed. The use of his demon power had drained him, and his features returned to normal as he became human again.  
Goku was glad to see Sanzo back to normal, but was worried again, not knowing if he was okay.  
"I think he'll be alright,Goku, he most likely just needs some time recover...He should be fine after a goood rest." Hakkai reassured Goku.  
"Well isn't this great.." Gojyo said, with a sigh, as he pointed out the obvious resembance between Sanzo's demon form and the Seiten Taisei. "They use a whole bunch of power, and then go out like a light." He added, but more just to himself.  
Hakkai agreed with a nod, and then remembered Kougaiji and the others. He looked over to where they had been, but they were gone now. He wasn't quite happy with the terms they'd left on, and knew they'd be in for it the next time Kougaiji and the others showed up. "We might as well get to the next town..." Hakkai suggested, which both Gojyo and Goku quietly agreed with. Hakkai asked for Hakuryuu to transform, and they put Sanzo in the back. Gojyo took Sanzo's normal seat, and Goku sat on the floor, watching Sanzo as if something might happen. The rest of the drive to the next town was about four hours, and by that time, it was dark and they were all exhausted. Sanzo woke up twice during the drive, but only for a moment before passing out again. When they arrived, Hakkai made Gojyo look for an inn that was still open at this time of the night. Luckily, Gojyo found one inn that was just about to close up, and got them a room. They all moved sluggishly into the room, Goku helping Hakkai carry Sanzo in, while a tired Hakuryuu rested on Gojyo's head. Normally, the crimson haired kappa wouldn't have allowed this, but he was too tired to care.  
"I'm huuunngry..." Goku whined, but doubted he'd actually get anything at this time of night.  
"I'm afraid you'll just have to wait until morning..." Hakkai said, turning to look at Goku.  
It was a fairly small room, so they'd put Sanzo on the one bed, and made make-shift beds for themselves on the floor. Both Goku and Gojyo fell asleep quickly, but Hakkai seemed to want to stay awake a little longer. With Hakuryuu curled up on his lap, he sat up, leaning against the wall, as he looked over at Sanzo.  
Sanzo had woken up before Gojyo and Goku had fallen asleep, but made no signs of it. He knew Hakkai could tell he was awake, and waited for him to say something.  
"Care to explain what happened earlier?" Hakkai asked quietly, in a serious tone that wasn't often heard.  
"I thought I already did." Sanzo answered, his tone quickly showing annoyance.  
"Perhaps not about what you did to Kougaiji, and what you would have done to Lirin, but you might have come after us if we hadn't gotten the power limiter back on you. It seems to be the same thing that happens to Goku...How he becomes the Seiten Taisei...The way your power is released is similar. You know as well as I do that your control over your own power is weak. I suggest you don't take the limiter off unless it is absolutely necessary..." Hakkai said, with a sigh. "This complicates things..." He added quietly.  
Sanzo didn't seem to want to answer, at least not right away. He was lying on his side, facing away from Hakkai, and showed no intent to look at him.  
"Don't you have anything to say?" Hakkai asked, more than slightly annoyed after apparently getting no answer.  
"What the hell do you want me to say? I get it, Hakkai..." Sanzo said, even angrier now. He waited for a moment, seeming to think about something before he opened his mouth again. "I think Kougaiji's group has a bigger part in this, and they won't die anytime soon, but it's about time we got serious. They aren't going to stop until we're dead, they have the scripture, or both. You've seen the lengths Kougaiji's gone to just to try and get my scripture before, and things are only going to get worse from here on. You know how it is. Kill or be killed. That's the way things work with demons." Sanzo said, and they both knew he had a point.  
Still, Hakkai disliked the thought of having to kill any of them, especially Lirin or Yaone. They had always been rivals, but Hakkai knew what Sanzo said was true...It was either Kougaiji's group or them. Hakkai sighed. "I suppose there isn't any other way...I doubt we'd be able to talk them out of trying to take the scripture." Hakkai said, but it began sounding like nonsense. He, if not anyone else, was probably caring too much. Sanzo was right. They were enemies.  
"...Talk them out of it? Are you serious?" Sanzo replied, giving Hakkai an /almost/ worried look.  
"No...Just wishful thinking. I have a feeling they're just as caught up in this as we are..." Hakkai said, and was going to add more, but stopped there. "You should get some rest." Hakkai finished, glancing over at Sanzo. He sighed quietly, and fell alseep quickly.  
Sanzo stared at the ceiling for a few more minutes before dozing off, himself.  
The next morning, everyone woke up late. Hakkai was the first one up, followed quickly by Sanzo, and then Gojyo. Not suprisingly, Goku was the last one to wake up, and like always, demanded food again.  
"I'm huuuunngrryyy!" He whined, but his complaining was cut short with a whack from Sanzo's fan.  
"C'mon, let's get going." Sanzo said, tucking the fan away.


End file.
